Getting Started with Zoom

Overview

Instructional Zoom meetings recorded to the cloud will be stored only in Lecture Capture (Panopto). Instructional recordings captured in Zoom will automatically be placed in a class folder and deleted from Zoom. Any recordings made from outside of Canvas will be stored in the Zoom cloud instead of Panopto for 30 days. Learn more…

 

Zoom Online Meetings, Chat, and Collaboration

Zoom is an online and mobile meeting solution that combines real-time chat, content sharing, and video in an easy-to-use interface to enrich teaching and learning. It integrates with the University’s new Learning Management System (Canvas) and with Zoom Rooms hybrid classroom technology to facilitate remote teaching and learning.

Online Student Engagement and Learning

  • Conduct virtual classes: Stream lessons to students (300 attendees for faculty and staff accounts).
  • Facilitate collaboration: Utilize one-click content sharing, co-annotation, polling, digital whiteboarding, and breakout rooms to engage students.
  • Present from the classroom: Utilize technology-enabled classrooms on campus to stream lessons to your students.
  • Record classes: Record classes and lessons to help students review material (be sure to obtain consent from all parties prior to recording).
  • Host virtual office hours: Use Zoom meetings to meet with students for office hours.

 

Detail

Creating and Logging Into Your University Zoom Account

You can create a brand new Zoom account with your Pitt email address or link an existing Zoom account that uses your Pitt email address.

Creating and Logging Into Your University Zoom Account

 

Scheduling a Meeting

Participants do not need a Zoom account in order to attend a meeting. You only need a Zoom account to schedule or host Zoom meetings. See Zoom Rooms for information about scheduling a meeting in a Zoom Room.

From the Zoom Desktop Client
From the Zoom Web Portal
From Outlook

 

Scheduling and Starting Meetings on Behalf of Someone Else

Scheduling Meetings on Behalf of Someone Else

Scheduling Meetings on Behalf of Someone Else

You may have an assistant that already schedules meetings on your behalf through Outlook. You can also enable your assistant to schedule Zoom meetings on your behalf. They can schedule meetings using the Zoom desktop client, web portal, or Outlook Plugin. Once you have scheduled a meeting for someone, they can start the meeting without you needing to be present.  

Starting Meetings on Behalf of Someone Else

Starting Meetings on Behalf of Someone Else

Designating an alternative host allows someone else at Pitt to start your Zoom meeting if you are unable to do so. When you designate someone as an alternative host, they’ll receive an email confirmation that contains a link they can use to start the meeting. 

 

Types of Zoom Meetings

Meeting Type Maximum participants Who Can Schedule Meeting Length
Basic license* 100 Sponsored accounts 40-minute limit
Regular meeting 300 Faculty, Students and staff 24-hour limit
Large meeting 500 Premium add-on available for purchase in PantherExpress 24-hour limit
Webinar 500 Premium add-on available for purchase in PantherExpress 24-hour limit

 

*Users with Basic licenses may request to be upgraded to a regular license through the Technology Help Desk. A regular meeting license is required for premium add-ons.

Zoom Meetings: Etiquette and Best Practices

Review these tips to ensure a positive experience for all your participants.

 

Closed Captioning and Transcripts

Live Closed Captioning

Hosts may designate a meeting attendee to provide live captioning. The captioner types text into a field and presses Enter to display that text for any meeting attendee who has chosen to view closed captions. Captioning may or may not be Section 508 compliant. Learn more...

Audio Transcripts

By default, all videos recorded to the Zoom cloud have their audio transcribed. Transcripts are not available in real time, but they can be viewed during playback of the recorded meeting. Meeting hosts can edit transcripts as needed. Please note that audio transcripts are not Section 508 compliant. Learn more...

Live Transcripts

This captioning feature uses artificial intelligence to display what the speaker is saying as text at the bottom of the meeting video. This feature is designed to improve overall user accessibility of Zoom meetings and webinars. AI powered live transcription can be enabled by the host and any participants can view the captioning as needed.

Note: Breakout rooms and the Zoom HIPAA environment do not currently support the use of Live Transcripts.

Live transcription only supports English and it is recommended that you speak clearly for best results. The accuracy of Zoom’s live transcription feature depends on many variables, such as background noise, volume and clarity of the speaker’s voice, the speaker's proficiency with the English language, etc.

1. To activate the Live Transcript as a host, locate the Live Transcript setting in meeting controls, then click Enable Auto-Transcription.

2. To view or hide the visibility of a Live Transcript in the sidebar, click Live Transcript, then View Full Transcript or Hide Full Transcript.

3. To hide or view subtitles displayed over the video, click Live Transcript, then Hide Subtitle or View Subtitle.

Additional information about Live Transcript is available from Zoom.

 

Zoom AI Companion

Zoom AI Companion provides additional AI-based features for meetings, such as Meeting Summaries and Smart Chapters and Meeting Coach for recorded meetings.  The feature is available currently at no cost to any standard Zoom user not in the Pitt HIPAA-compliant environment.  Due to nature of AI, the Zoom AI Companion is disabled by default for all users.  Users may request to have the option enabled on their Zoom account via the help desk.  Currently the user must personally request the feature on their own account since it will have access to their meeting data.  We do not permit a user to request the feature on behalf of other users without approval.  More information about the Zoom AI Companion can be found here.

 

Acceptable Use

Zoom is intended to support teaching, learning, research, and University-related business activities. Use of Zoom is subject to the University’s Acceptable Computing Access and Use guidelines.

 

Zoom Preparations for Individuals Leaving Pitt

Individuals who graduate, retire, or otherwise leave the University lose access to Zoom through pitt.zoom.us. Therefore, Pitt IT advises anyone leaving the University to cancel their recurring Zoom meetings and ask a University colleague to reschedule them. In addition, you may wish to download any recorded meetings that you have saved in the Panopto cloud or the Zoom cloud. 

 

Compliance

HIPAA Compliance

 

Preventing and Reporting Zoombombing

Zoombombing

Zoombombing refers to an unwanted, disruptive intrusion into a Zoom videoconference. In a typical Zoombombing incident, trolls or hackers might disrupt a meeting by inserting material that is lewd, obscene, racist, or antisemitic in nature.

Preventing Zoombombing

Refer to our Zoom Meetings: Etiquette and Best Practices page for guidance and tips to deter Zoombombing.

More information for securing your meetings can be found in the Zoom Security Guide.

Reporting Zoombombing

If you experience a Zoombombing incident, please work with the meeting host to report it. Note that only meeting hosts can report incidents using the options below.

During a meeting

Complete the following steps to report an incident during a meeting. Your report will be sent directly to Zoom.

1. As the meeting host, click the Security icon in your meeting toolbar and select Report.

2.Select the name of the participant you would like to report and select the reason for reporting this participant. You also have the option to add comments, photos, or screenshots of the incident.

3. Click Send.

After a meeting

Meeting hosts can complete the University's Report a Zoombombing form to report a Zoombombing incident after the meeting ends. Your report will be sent to Zoom, Pitt IT Security, and Office of Diversity & Inclusion.

 

Related Information

Help Resources

Zoom Essentials

Zoom Detailed Help

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EMAIL AND COLLABORATION SERVICES Zoom is an easy, reliable cloud platform for video conferencing, collaboration, chat, and webinars across mobile devices and desktops.